The night quietly descended, moonlight casting a clear brilliance upon the ground. All was silent around, as everything sank into slumber.
Su Xi lay in bed, contemplating how long it would be before those people made their move, when she suddenly heard a sudden bird call from outside the door.
Not long after the bird call, she quickly heard the sound of Damao getting up in the room.
Damao tiptoed to Su Xi's side, nudged her, and whispered, "Sister, the time has come, we should be on our way."
Su Xi, "..."
The words were not wrong, but why did they sound so strange?
Why say "on our way" when "set off" would suffice?
Su Xi chided herself for overthinking, tossing the strange thoughts aside to focus on the task at hand.
"Let's go," Su Xi sat up in bed, then looked at Damao beside her, awaiting his next move.
She had not forgotten her mission for the night: not to leave the village, but to obtain useful information from Damao.
Seeing Su Xi ready, Damao instructed her to follow him and walked towards the outskirts of the village.
Following Damao, Su Xi found herself heading towards a secluded corner of the village.
As they approached the increasingly remote area, a hint of confusion surfaced in Su Xi's mind.
Where were they going?
If she remembered correctly, that place was a sheer cliff, with no exit. Where were they going now?
However, with Heavenly Gang True Person by her side, Su Xi felt no worry. With the Ancestral Master in hand, she had the world.
Uh.
Although the Ancestral Master seemed rather peculiar at the moment, his cultivation was still intact, so there shouldn't be any problems.
She was indeed very curious at this moment, wondering why Heavenly Gang True Person was so emotionally volatile.
Just as Su Xi was pondering, she suddenly noticed movement ahead. She quickly pulled Damao and called out, "Wait a moment."
Damao stopped and looked at Su Xi with confusion, quietly asking, "What's wrong?"
It was already the appointed time. If they didn't leave quickly, and were discovered, they would never have another chance to leave here.
Su Xi did not answer Damao's question, but instead retorted, "How many people did you arrange to leave with tonight?"
"Just us few friends," Damao blinked, not understanding Su Xi's question.
Su Xi smiled, you'll know in a moment.
Unable to meet up with his companions, Damao was feeling anxious and wanted to persuade Su Xi to hurry.
Suddenly, footsteps sounded from ahead, followed by a scolding voice, "Audacious peasants, how dare you defy the imperial decree! I see you are all tired of living."
At the same time, the sound of children crying also began to be heard.
Hearing the commotion outside, Damao's face turned somewhat pale. He knew his friends had been captured.
Fortunately, he hadn't gone out, or he would have been captured too. If captured by these people, not only would he not survive, but he would also endure inhuman torture, and his family would suffer as well.
"Let's go, we're going back," Su Xi pulled the distraught Damao towards home.
If they couldn't leave through the ground, it didn't mean they couldn't leave through the sky. And these people on the ground were no match for her.
The reason she wasn't leaving now was that she had discovered something interesting. She wouldn't leave easily until she had figured things out.
On the way back, Su Xi took the opportunity to inquire, "Near the village, have you noticed anything unusual?"
"Lately, it's been strange with fires breaking out inexplicably, and even..." Damao's attention was immediately diverted, and he recounted what he had observed.
Hearing Damao's words, Su Xi showed a look of 'as expected' and continued to ask, "Do you know where these fires frequently occur?"
The sacred object of Penglai Mountain was a fire-attribute spirit pearl, which perfectly matched everything happening here. If she could find the source of the fires, she would have a chance to find the fire spirit pearl.
Damao shook his head upon hearing Su Xi's question, "I don't know about that either."
They usually only noticed fires breaking out inexplicably, without paying attention to where they were prone to start, so they couldn't recall specific locations immediately.
Although she hadn't gotten what she wanted, Su Xi wasn't worried.
Since she was already in the village, there was nothing left to worry about. As long as she investigated, she was sure to get the information she needed.
The commotion outside was significant, and everyone in the village came out.
The elder also stood at the door, her heart filled with worry.
It was only when she saw Su Xi and Damao appear that she let out a long sigh of relief and asked with concern, "What happened?"
They had agreed to leave, so why had they suddenly returned?
Damao pulled the elder and explained the situation to her.
Just as the elder was about to tell Su Xi and Damao to go back and rest, they suddenly heard the sound of gongs and drums.
"What's happening?" Su Xi looked curiously in the direction of the sound, unable to understand why such a loud commotion was being made at night.
However, upon hearing the sound of gongs and drums, both Damao and the elder's faces darkened considerably.
As natives of the village, they clearly knew what the sound of gongs and drums meant late at night. With grim faces, despite their reluctance, they followed the crowd.
Su Xi thought for a moment and also followed.
She wanted to see what was so peculiar outside.
Following the crowd, they arrived at a small square. Many soldiers stood ready around the square, holding torches that illuminated everything as if it were daytime.
In the center of the small square stood many villagers, their faces all grim. In the middle, several wooden pillars were erected, and several young men, with their upper bodies bare, were tied to them. Each of them had countless wounds.
A person dressed in Taoist robes stood before a series of offerings, chanting incessantly.
Not far from him, a man stepped forward and addressed the villagers, "The imperial court has repeatedly ordered you not to flee. Since you have disobeyed, you must pay the price."
After speaking, the man nodded to the Taoist behind him and commanded, "Proceed immediately."
"Yes."
Upon hearing this, the Taoist grabbed the peach wood sword from the table and, aiming it at the exposed chest of a young boy, plunged it in.
The originally wooden peach wood sword, however, exuded a sharp glint as it was wielded. Clearly, being stabbed by the peach wood sword would leave no possibility of survival.
Seeing this, everyone wore expressions of unbearable pain. Some of the fainter-hearted had already closed their eyes, unable to bear witnessing the cruel scene before them.